My Life With SEGA remembers it all in Flashback

This week on My Life With SEGA, AJ plays the SEGA Genesis classic Flashback: The Quest for Identity. Here’s a question: if it’s titled “Flashback”, why does it take place in the future? Anyway, here’s what AJ has to say about this week’s show:

This is largely considered one of the best cinematic platformers ever made, along with Prince of Persia and Another World. It had one of the most ambitious marketing campaigns I’ve ever seen, boldly exclaiming it’s “A CD-ROM game in a CARTRIDGE!”. My brother and I were amazed….back in 1993.

Is it a flashback worth having, or should we data-dump it like a fresh brownie?

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Sonic Talk Episode 11 “Skype sucks”

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The internet is a very confusing thing to me sometimes. It carries a ton of data at insane speeds over phone lines and even wireless. The same kind of phone lines that we’ve been using for decades to have conversations. SO WHY CAN’T WE HAVE A PROGRAM THAT ALLOWS US TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS THAT DON’T DROP OFF?!! It’s really insane. It was so bad, I gave up a few times and this episode was originally in six pieces until I wrangled everything together. If you didn’t care for Episode 10’s 3-Hour podcast, you’ll be happy to know that this one comes in just barely over an hour.

Also, sorry for the poor audio quality of the intro. I was trying to do something funny and failed. (Also, I need to keep my fan away from the mic.) Read on for this week’s topics.

Sonic Talk Episode 10 “Better Late than Never”

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FINALLY!! Yours truly learned how to edit audio and has a double dose of Sonic Talk for you this week!

Sorry about the lateness of this episode. We recorded this just days before We left for the San Diego Comic Con and it took us forever to get it out. This episode has a lot of GX and Nuckles87 getting on each others nerves in a fun way while I’m lucky to get a word in. One thing I’ll say, this week’s episode has more music than ever before.

My Life With SEGA hits the streets in The Crow: City of Angels

Ah yes, that age old question: does an awful movie yield an awful video game? Find out in this week’s My Life With SEGA episode, as AJ suffers though (blast! I already gave it away) the SEGA Saturn game The Crow: City of Angels.

“Abashed the Devil stood and felt how awful….well, AWFULNESS is!”

Yeah, I know that’s not the line, but it’s so much more appropriate. Why, you ask? How can the one and only game based on the craptacular sequel to one of the greatest comic-to-film adaptations be anything less than incredible?

Watch it and know my pain.

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The SEGA Five: Revisiting Green Hill Act 1

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In the Sonic universe there is nothing more iconic than the zone that started it all: Green Hill. Any and every SEGA and Sonic fan should know the look and layout of this zone, specifically the first act and even more specifically the first few moments experienced by players. I’m talking about the line of rings, followed by the platform with an item box above and a Motobug below, a Buzz Bomber enters from the right of the screen, passing a palm tree with a spring hidden inside. For many fans, this was their introduction to Sonic as a character and as a franchise. Sonic Team knew the importance of the first zone, as (according to the Sonic Jam strategy guide) it took the team six months to perfect the look and design of Green Hill. In the years that followed, the opening layout of Green Hill reappeared a number of times. In this week’s SEGA Five, I’ll look back on those times, noting the strengths, weaknesses and possible reasons for referencing the classic layout.

My Life With SEGA takes on the whole Empire in Star Wars Arcade

This week, AJ strikes back with an all out attack of the 32X in his review of Star Wars Arcade.

The adventure continues in Star Wars: Episode II – Rise of the 32X, where I review Star Wars Arcade. Yeah, it’s a port of the SEGA-produced arcade game from 1993. Now, SEGA has made some miraculous conversions, such as Virtua Fighter 2 for Saturn and Crazy Taxi for Dreamcast….

Should this 32X exclusive be counted among them?

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Review: Jack Lumber (iOS)

Announced and released on the same day, Jack Lumber, was both a surprise and a curiosity. As the first SEGA Alliance title, Jack Lumber was developed by an external independent developer by the name of Owlchemy Labs and published by SEGA. Per the SEGA Alliance description, SEGA also provided marketing and production support as well as creative consultation. The end result is a fun and unique game that definitely has that SEGA spirit, despite being developed by an external developer.

My Life with SEGA becomes one with the Force in Star Wars: Rebel Assault

This week, My Life with SEGA returns to a galaxy far, far away in Star Wars: Rebel Assault for the SEGA CD. Will it be a day long remembered, or will it end up being Bantha poodoo?

It may be hard to believe, but long before Greedo shot first, or the prequels devided the fanbase, I was playing Rebel Assault; my very first Star Wars game. It has been a day long remembered….

Now, 18 years since it’s release on the SEGA CD, I ask myself, “Is it still a day worth remembering?”

Let’s find out.

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SEGA Tunes: Rhythm Thief Month “Melody of Hope”

Melody of Hope is a very dynamic, beautful track. Despite it’s name, it does not start out as an optimistic song. Indeed, from the offset it’s quite foreboding. Then, about midway, it begins to change it’s tone. There is some genuine conflict in the song as it evolves into something truly optimistic and uplifting. This is the kind of track that can really be appreciated on it’s own, even without a game, and highlights just how spectacular the Rhythm Thief soundtrack can be. It also goes very well with its plays in the game’s storyline, which I won’t elaborate upon so as to avoid spoilers.

Below is Moon Princess, Marie’s first song in the game and alongside Melody of Hope, also one of the its best tracks.

Let’s evaluate the Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed track roster, shall we?

Three months until the release of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, and there is still a lot we don’t know. What racers have we yet to see? How does the vehicle mod system work? Is Cream the Rabbit somewhere in the game? Thankfully, we’re not completely in the dark, as Sumo Digital and SEGA have revealed quite a bit since the game’s announcement. I thought I’d write up a short article collecting all we know of the game’s track roster. What has been announced, what has yet to be announced and what SEGA eras are getting represented? After the break, we’ll answer those questions! But not the one about Cream, sorry.

Weekly Five: Reasons why you should import Max Anarchy/Anarchy Reigns


Poor Anarchy Reigns. It really got a bum rap this year after Sega went through its restructuring. From being delayed indefinitely, possibly being cancelled to finally having a super-delayed release date of early 2013. All the while, Platinum Games finished the Japanese version with full localization built in for a world wide release. Several Platinum Games fans were outraged that they wouldn’t be able to play the game for another 6-9 months from now. I’m sure there’s a logical and financial reason why they’d make such a delay, but it makes no sense to me.

But why wait? The game is region free on both X-Box 360 and PS3 and is available to import from sites like Play Asia right now! It’ll cost a bit more than if you wait, but if you want one of the best brawling games this generation early, this is the best way to go. Read on to see what you’re missing out on.

Review: Rhythm Thief and the Emperor’s Treasure

It’s been a very long time coming, but after months of being in Japan and Europe Rhythm Thief has finally arrived on American shores. If the rumors of the game selling out are true, it seems to be a hit! But was this game worth the long wait? Will Phantom R’s musical escapades win you over or does it fall out of tune? Read on.